"PIT!"

"I KNOW!"

"GET IT OFF!"

"I KNOW! I'M TRYING!"

"TRY FASTER!"

Pit stood, unable to look away as Casper grappled with the twisting head of the Night Beast. The creature's scales glinted in the dim light as it snapped and thrashed, but Casper remained determined not to die, so he fought to gain the upper hand and escape its grasp. Pit wanted to help as he watched. However, he realized that the beast standing on top of Casper was not the one that was in front of them just seconds ago. The beast was a different size, much smaller than the other, and the ferocity it showed was as if it was starving. Despite his desire to help, Pit knew that he had to come up with a plan first.

These beasts hunted in pairs, and from the size of this one, Pit could tell or hoped that it was very young, maybe only a few weeks or months old, but it was still as big as Aster. If this was true, then it did not bode well, but at the same time, he hoped it was true. If it was true and it was young, then it might not even be a one-star yet, but that raised the question of how strong the other was. If the opposite was true, and it was just small in size, it raised many more questions: was it a mutation? Is it a gender divide? If so, which is it... so many questions popped into his head. He needed to know the answer before he could make a plan.

"PIT!"

"I'M THINKING!"

"IT'S CLAWS ARE DIGGING DEEPER INTO MY STOMACH! HURRY!"

"Pit, please help my brother!"

Pit suddenly thought of something, a plan that, no matter the answer to any question he had before, it would work.

"Luckily, you're not so useless, Aster!" Pit mumbled

Casper lay on his back, struggling against the thing on top of him. Although the creature seemed too small to be a predator like this, it seemed smart as its sharp claws pierced his skin, making it almost impossible to push it off. Casper knew that any injury, even the smallest one, would be significant in a fight like this, so he continued to struggle.

The creature lunged its head, trying to wrap its twisting, gaping jaws around Casper's head. He moved his head to the side and dodged while pushing the creature's head to the opposite side. His dodge caused the creature to miss its target and sink its sharp teeth into the ground. The creature screeched in frustration as it realized its mistake, pulling its head back and preparing to strike again. The two engaged in a dance of sorts as Casper barely evaded the creature's attacks, forcing it to bite at the ground beside him repeatedly.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Casper screamed in a sharp guttural shriek as the beast dug into his shoulder before it yanked its sharp claw out, pulling off the clothes and skin from his body, letting the small green motes of life essence float out of the open wounds. The beast chomped its jaw as if laughing as it placed the claw where Casper had been moving his head.

'Stupid smart beast!' Casper thought

Casper swore he could see a gloating glimmer in the creature's eyes. Its head moved slowly, much slower than it had been, as if it was taunting him, savoring the smell of his fear and panic. Its breath smelled awful, like rot. No, Casper knew exactly what it smelled like. It was death, and Casper's thoughts slowed there, losing focus on the danger. Did death have a smell? Was it something embedded into everyone, or was he going crazy? Was fear and panic taking over and twisting his mind? Casper began to panic as he tried to push the beast's head away with all his strength, but all it did was slow the impending death.

"PIT! PLEASE!"

As Casper lay waiting for his fate, the air suddenly started to warm up, and he could feel a heat emanating close to his head. The beast hissed as it leaped off of Casper, tearing through his clothes with its sharp claws before it scurried away from the heat. Unfortunately, the wound on his shoulder, which was already leaking Life Essence, was growing worse, causing him to feel weaker with every passing moment, but at least the beast was gone.

"CASPER! GRAB THE BRANCH!"

Casper turned to see a burning branch nearby. Looking back, he saw a pool of fire and a shattered alchemical lamp where Pit and the others were.

'Did they really break it? Why?'

Pit gazed at the fire that was getting bigger. He knew the alchemic liquid would not last for long, and he considered himself fortunate that it was the fire essence it had reacted with. The liquid could be highly volatile, and its reaction with the mixture of essences in the air was unpredictable. There was no telling what essence it would react with and what would be created. If it had been anything else, his ideas would have still worked, but fire was the best outcome as the things that Night Beast hated the most were light and warmth, something fire was great at.

Chk chk chk

The Night Beast could still be heard around them, but it was impossible to pinpoint the location as it seemed to be constantly prowling around them.

"Pit, what is this thing?" Casper screamed

"Night Beast!"

"And?"

"Hates fire! Scales are tough! Aim for the face or paws, no scales! TAIL DEADLY!"

"GOT IT!"

Casper accepted the information Pit rattled off without hesitation, knowing whatever Pit said would be better than doing nothing. The two had trained together for two years, often sparring against other knights in training and each other, so Casper knew that Pit wouldn't say information if he was not sure of it. Because of all this, Pit had developed a habit of giving Casper information and then waiting for an opportunity to strike while Casper did the fighting. Was this confidence in his own abilities or Casper's? Whatever it was, this was a strategy they had developed over time together, and now they were putting it into practice in a situation where their lives were at risk.